Mad Powers (Tapped In) by Mark Wayne McGinnis Page A

uncomfortable expressions. Some looked back, beckoning him to get up and fight the fight. Others looked away, embarrassed by his defeat.
    Russell was the first to come at me. He’d pulled his knife from his boot and was quickly moving in my direction. Surprisingly, it was the woman who stopped him. With the palm of her hand held to his chest, she simply shook her head. Russell stopped, but kept his eyes firmly on mine. The woman biker dismounted, walked over to Tag’s outstretched body, and stared down at her man. They looked at each other for what seemed an extended period. Then she smiled and started to laugh. Tag, anger subsiding, began to laugh too. She held out her hand and helped the big biker to his feet. They climbed on their bike—first her, then him. When he finally looked at me again, he simply nodded. He started his bike, and the others followed suit. They left. Russell was the last to leave and, by his expression, I’d be seeing him again.
    I had just enough time to cross over Andy Devine Avenue and catch the bus. It would take about thirty minutes before the bus would reach the Kingman Regional Medical Center.

Chapter 14
     
     
    By the time Pippa and Giles landed, showed their creds to retrieve their stowed weapons and had made their way over to the Hertz desk to rent a sedan, it was already close to noon. Giles was signing the auto rental form when Pippa’s phone vibrated in her pocket.
    “Rosette,” she said, turning away from the counter.
    Giles took the paperwork and the car key from the agent. He watched Pippa, who was listening intently, her expression serious.
    “I understand. No, we were going to grab a quick bite, but we’ll head on over there now. Yes, sir.”
    Pippa put away her cell phone and looked up at Giles. “One of the nurses who’d attended to Chandler has been killed. We’re to meet up with the Kingman PD. A Detective Whittier will debrief us, and we can move forward from there.”
    Pippa had opted to drive. She needed to think, and driving always helped her work things out in her mind. With a three-hour trek ahead, from Phoenix International to the city of Kingman, she’d have plenty of time to mull things over. In light of the latest developments, catching up to Chandler had become even more pressing. She briefly wondered if Chandler was really capable of cold-blooded murder. Could she have been that wrong about him?
    “Huh, look at that,” Giles said, pointing at an all-you-can-eat advertisement on a billboard now disappearing behind them.
    She’d realized early on that once Giles started talking he rarely came up for air.
    “What kind of name is Pippa, anyway? Hey, you’re a single girl, aren’t you? You have roommates? You dating anyone right now?”
    “That’s all a bit personal, Giles. Yes, I’m single. Yes, I live by myself, but no, I won’t talk about my relationships.”
    “That’s fine. Hey, just making small talk here. We haven’t really worked together—you know, in the field before.”
    Pippa nodded, but found it best not to say anything in response. Giles would take any comment she made and turn it into more questions, more talking.
    Giles flipped down the sun visor and looked at himself in the mirror. He retrieved his comb and gave his hair a few quick swipes. He turned his head from side to side. Apparently pleased with his looks, he flipped the visor back into place. Pippa watched him in her peripheral vision. Surprised how obsessed he was with his hair yet he allowed more than a few inches to hang over his belt.
    Pippa’s mind was back on Chandler. The last time they’d seen each other was eighteen months earlier. They both were returning from completed assignments in the field, first Pippa and then Rob. He said it would take no more than a month to tie up some loose ends, and then he’d join her back in the States.
    She smiled to herself, thinking how insecure he had been around her. For someone who was second-to-none in undercover ops, he